Steam-engine governor.



No. 818,711. PATENTED AIB. 24, 1906. W. N. RUMELY. STEAM ENGINEGOVERNOR.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20. 1905.

/ WWW Inventor Attorney Witnesses:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

STEAM-ENGINE GOVERNOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 24, 1906.

Application filed September 20, 1905. Serial No. 279,213.

To all whom, it may concern;

Be it known that I, NILLIAM N. RUMELY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ii-aporte, Laporte county, Indiana, (postofiice addressLaporte, Indiana,) have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSteam-Engine Governors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention, relating to improvements in steam-engine governors ofthe Pickering type, will be readily understood from the fol lowingdescription, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, inwhich- Figure 1 is a vertical section of the upper portion of asteam-engine governor of the Pickering type embodying my improvement;Fig. 2, a plan of the head; and Fig. 3, a plan of one of thegovernor-weights in conjunction with its guard-loop and the guardsleeve,the stud appearing in horizontal section.

In the drawings, 1 indicates the housing; 2, the fixed hollow studrising therefrom; 3, the whirl fitted to turn freely on the lowerportion of the stud; 4, a bevel-gear fast on the whirl; 5, thepulley-shaft 6, a bevel-gear fast on the pulley-shaft engaging the gearon the whirl; 7, the governor-head mounted to turn and reciprocate onthe principal end of the stud; 8, the valve-stem extending freelythrough the stud and governor-head; 9, a button on the upper end of thevalve-stem; 10, a cap forming a part of the governorhead engaging overthe button, and 11 a spring compressed between the governorhead and thelower surface of the button and serving to maintain the valve-stem incon stant vertical relationship with the governor-head while permittingthe head to rise somewhat independent of the stem. All of the parts thusfar referred to are or may be constructed and arranged in the usualmanner and subject to any of the usual or proper variations.

Proceeding with the drawings, 12 indicates radial notches in the whirland governor-head, the illustration showing four of these notches ineach of the parts; 13, blocks in these notches and fitting them sidewiseand presenting flat outer faces; 1 .1, horizontal pivots crossing thenotches and having the bloc is pivoted upon them; 15, flat metallicsprings, preferably laminated, the upper end of each spring beingsecured to a block in the governor-head while its lower end is securedto a corresponding block below it in the whirl; 16, governor-balls, onebeing attached to each spring at about its middle length; 17, a coiledspring surrounding the stud and compressed between the whirl and thegovernor-head; 18, the usual guard-loops attached to thegovernor-weights and reaching inwardly around the stud and serving tolimit the outward movement of the governor-weights, these loops in thepresent case being much wider than usual; 19, a sleeve surrounding thespring 17 in the general plane of revolution of the governorweights, theguard-loops encircling this sleeve, peripheral flanges on the sleeveserving by engagement with the upper and lower guard-loops to preventthe vertical displacement of the sleeve, and 20 the usual collar on thestud to prevent the vertical displacement of the whirl. The spring 17furnishes the centripetal force, while the balls furnish the centrifugalforce. Spring 17 tends to elevate the governor-head and hold the ballsinwardly and hold the valve-stem in its highest position. Centrifugalforce tends to throw the balls outwardly and lower the governorhead andvalve-stem, all as usual in the Pickering type of governors.

In governors of the Pickering type as usually constructed the springs 15were formed each of a number of thin ribbons of steel laid together, theupper end of the laminated spring thus formed being secured fixedly tothe governor-head against a surface parallel with the axis of the head,while the lower end would be secured against a similar surface of thewhirl. In such case the flexibility of the laminated springs wasdepended upon to permit of the freedom of movement of the parts as theballs moved outwardly and inwardly and as the governonhead moveddownwardly, there being no joints of articulation about the springs. Thepractical effect of this action, especially in governors working undercircumstances involving frequent changes in speed to be taken care of,was to break the springs where they joined the governor-head and thewhirl as the flexation of the springs became largely concentrated nearthe points of juncture, resulting in the breaking of one lamina and theconsequent imposure of extra duty upon the unbroken ones, which in turnwould also successively yield to the bending and breaking strains. Inthe present case, however, while the flexibility of the springs isinvolved in the movement of the parts it is supplemented by joints ofarticulation connecting the springs with the governor-head and thewhirl,the blocks 13 forming end armatures for the springs and serving as meansby which the ends of the springs are pivoted to the governor-head andwhirl. By means of this construction a concentration of the bending ofthe springs near their upper and lower ends is avoided, and they mayperform their duty by bends of large curvature fairly distributedthroughout the length of the springs.

The blocks and springs are so constructed that when the springs are innormal condition, corresponding with a stationary condition of thegovernor, the springs are out wardly flexed to some degree and the outersurfaces of the blocks instead of being parallel with the aXis of thestud are at angles such that the face of the block on the governorheadconverges outwardly toward the face of the corresponding block on thewhirl, the result being that the faces of the blocks and the ends of thesprings attached to them correspond substantially with the normaloutward curve of the springs. The result of this arrangement is thatflexation of the material of the springs at points near thegovernor-head and the whirl becomes serious only as the balls moveoutward to considerable degree. The presence of the centripetal spring17 is found to be somewhat inconsistent with the action of the usualguard-loopsdepending upon contact with the stud 2, and therefore in thepresent case the sleeve member is em ployed, which permits the properaction of the guard-loops, notwithstanding the presence of the spring.The purpose of this sleeve member is simply to furnish a stop turningwith the governor-weights cooperatingdwith the guard-loops independentof the stu I The number of governor-balls is immaterial. Theillustration provides for four of them, and it is generally customary ingovernors of the Pickering type to provide for three or moregovernor-balls. The so-called blocks 13 will be recognized as merepivotbearings provided at the ends of the springs 15. While the bendingof the ends of the springs 15 to form pivot-eyes to engage the pivots 14might be substituted for the attached blocks and form an equivalent forthem, the separately-formed construction is deemed preferable, as itavoids the necessity for bending the material of the springs and avoidspivotal wear upon the material of the springs.

I claim as my invention In a governor, the combination, substantially asset forth, of a rotary governorhead mounted for movement in line of itsaxis, a governor-weight pendulously connected with said governor-head, ahelical spring surrounding the axis of rotation of the governor-head andengaging the governor-head, a sleeve member loosely surrounding thespring in the general plane of revolution of the governorweight,and aguard projecting inwardly from the governor-weight and adapted to engagethe side of said sleeve member farthest from the governor-weight andlimit the outward movement of the governor-weight.

' WILLIAM N. RUMELY.

Witnesses:

ELMER R. SI-IIPLEY, M. S. BELDEN.

